Year 2949: The King's Hunt

[Vladim]

[OOC: Sorry - I must have missed the summary you provided in your previous post. Just a concequence of late posting and sleep deprivation. Well, Polin and Pomin are half-mad at this stage, so it kinda works anyway - let's just roll with it  ]

Polin squinted as Barin spoke, seemingly confused and in disbelief that a dwarf would be here by king Thranduil's authority. 'Truly?' he replied, quizzically, 'you are with the elves, then? I did not believe it when you said it.' His expression changed to a scowl, and it was clear from it that he did not hold the elves in high regard. 'Thranduil may lay claim to all the forest, but where were his folk when the orcs came from the mountains? Or have you fallen for his empty promises? By what elf-spell has he brought you under his service?' he said, shaking his head in dissaproval. Whatever kinship Polin felt towards Barin now seemed to vanish.

'If you must know, this elf-maiden has done a great injustice to our chieftain, Frar. She was the one that cut off his beard, shaming him to his folk and hers. She is now under our watch, but we will ransom her as soon as Frar arrives. Thranduil owes Frar a great weregeld for Ruthiel's crime.'

[Vladim]

Barin sighed. Realising that his kinsmen may well have fallen into madness, he once again tried to reason with Polin.

"Polin, you know as well as I that Thranduil's realms only stretch as far as the eaves of the forest, and not to the mountains of our kinfolk. I'm certain that if there had been time to request aid before the Orcs forced you from our halls, then aid would have been forthcoming, yet do not forget that much of the Elven might was directed into Erebor when the Dragon's rule was challenged.

"Indeed, I am curious as to why you chose to settle here within the eaves of the forest when King Dain has offered aid to those kin of the Grey Mountains? Surely, you would have found more welcoming homes within the Lonely Mountain or further East in the Iron Hills, rather than skulking here like rats?

"But, I'm more intrigued as to how and when Ruthiel cut off Frar's beard? Tell me the circumstances surrounding this tale, and permit me to question the Elf myself. If she has indeed done ill by Frar then she should face the consequences as befits her crime, but be mindful that you are trespassing upon another King's realm, and such he may take a very dim view of your presence and actions here.

"You also said 'When Frar arrives', which leads me to believe he is not presently here. If so, I would know exactly when Ruthiel is alleged to have cut off his beard?

"And as for my presence - I am under no enchantment. I am here at the behest of King Bard of Lake-Town, Glóin, son of Gróin and King Dain Ironfoot himself, so be certain to only relate matters to me in truth."

At this he paused, looking expectantly at Polin to respond to his many questions.

[Vladim]

Barin’s barrage of questions was not left unanswered – if fact, before he was allowed to inquire about the cutting of Frar’s beard, he was interrupted abruptly by Polin, who sought to grant him an answer about why they remained here.

’Aid, you say?’ he retorted bitterly and snidely. ’Frar has long sought aid, as you say, but so far Dain has been less than forthcoming.’ he added with resentment. ’Indeed our kindred in Erebor are glad to see us unite under the Lonely Mountain, and to send words of counsel and encouragement, yet when it comes to material aid, they are silent. Our holdings, you see, hold no gold or silver, and so they look to other places, even if we are their neighbours.’ He spoke of his folk in Erebor as if they were a foreign people, unconcerned by their plight. ’But we shall not abandon our Dwarf-holds of old, even if we must live under the shadow of this accursed forest for a while.’

The last words were spoken with some measure of pride, and, Barin thought, some sense of judgement, for it was as if Polin did not count him amongst his kindred – the dwarves of the Grey Mountains - whilst explaining. After those words, neither Polin nor Pomin had anything to add; they simply let Barin continue speaking.

When he finally finished, they did not respond to his questions about Frar and Ruthiel at once; instead, it was the names of Bard and Dain that caught their attention. ’Not all of us are us lucky as you, to have such powerful friends.’ replied Pomin at length. Then he fell silent for a while, and at length replied with a question of his own. ’Why do you pursue the opening of that Old Road when your own homeland suffers under the vile feet of orcs? Moria has been lost to us for countless years, yet we can still drive the orcs away from the Grey Mountains… if our king willed it. You have the ears of kings; will you not use this to restore your forefathers’ halls?’

 

Decision points

Since we are not handling this with dice rolls, I think it’s better to decide where the story goes from here based on Barin’s choices. Basically, it boils down to a binary choice: continue to focus on restoring the Old Forest Road, or choose to instead shift priorities, and to use the resources and influence obtained so far to clear the Grey Mountains of the presence of the orcs.

Added complications: Barin can choose to lie to either side, but this will have some impact on the story, sooner or later. Or, Barin can attempt both objectives, but resources are finite, and spreading them too thin might result in little getting achieved.

Polin and Pomin are unlikely to cooperate unless they feel like they’re ‘getting’ something in return, so I’ll let you write what Barin wants to do now before moving forward.

[Vladim]

Barin remained silent for a while after Polin finished speaking.

At length, he nodded slowly, as he inwardly grappled with the conundrum of what would be the right thing to do. Finally, he came to a conclusion.

With a sign of resignation he said "Binazrâm hu tada taglibi 'aimu-galikh kuthu tharkh tadishi", then pausing a moment longer to find the right words he continued, "Aye, you are correct. I cannot stand idly by whilst my kinsmen are ousted from their homes. However, and heed my council on this matter I beg of you. If you attempt to return to your halls without the armies of King Dain behind you, you will surely perish, and the Orcs will have a firm foothold from whence to advance on both the forest and the plains of Erebor.

"Yet, you truly cannot remain here in the forest. If the Elvenking were to find you taking up home in his realm without his leave, he would surely hunt you down and either slay or imprison you - no, don't deny it - you don't have the numbers to stand against him in his own demesne.

"I suggest that you leave this place and make your way to the Lonely Mountain. For now. I cannot yet leave with you as the diplomacy here balances on a knife, but I swear this by my own beard I will petition not only the Elvenking, but also the Menfolk of Lake-Town as well as Gloin and King Dain to send aid. I'll walk all the way to the Iron Hills to petition our kinfolk there if I have to.

"Regardless of the lack of gold in our own halls, the Orcs cannot be allowed to entrench.

"However, this is not an undertaking that can be undertaken recklessly or without preparation. This is why it is imperative you heed my council here and go to the halls of Dain - when we march, we must march as one. Without, I fear we will suffer at the blades of the Orcs.

"Now, let me speak with the Elven Huntress. It is possible, if I can convince her of the need and the urgency that she may be able to help sway the mind of the Elvenking in our favour. Be advised though, he will expect recompense for any aid he offers."

Barin looked into Polin's eyes, a grim resolve settling across his features. He had given his council, and now - let the dice fall where they may.

 

OOC

So, the upshot is that Barin will try to petition the kings of Dwarves, Elves and Men to lend aid (and armies) to oust the Orcs from the Grey Mountains, but only once he has concluded his business here. Once back in Lake-town he'll likely separate from the rest of his company and tell Bofri that he intends to continue on to speak with Dain in person (assuming he can gain an audience).

Being a sensible Dwarf, he realises that whilst he'll not be able to dissuade Bofri and the others from trying to restore the Eastfort and regain the treasure from the Marsh-Dwellers, he accepts that his part in that endeavour is almost over, and that he'll not see it through to the end.

Much as he prefers the company of Men over his own Kin, he cannot stand idly by at such an affront as has been presented here.

[Vladim]

[OOC: Alright, I will summarize what happens next, and fast-forward to the Fellowship phase. If you want, feel free to embelish / further develop the following events, but it is not at all necessary.]

 

The Pit of Exiled Dwarves

_Barin's arguments, and particularly his commitment to help the cause of the Grey Mountain dwarves, convince Polin and Pomin to heed his counsel and proceed as he suggested.
_At first, they allow Barin to enter their temporary dwelling, leading him to Ruthiel, were they can try to set the matter straight.
_What follows is a long and intense argument with the elf-maiden, who is furious at her treatment by these dwarves, with frequent interjections from Polin and Pomin. At more than one times, this discussion threatens to escalate, almost into violence at times, as the elven huntress remains every bit as arrogant as before, and the two brothers are quite paranoid and hateful. With Barin's mediation this is averted.
_At length it is revealed that the entire situation was a great misunderstanding. It was Ruthiel's predecesor that cut off Frar's beard (for trespassing in Thranduil's realm), but Polin and Pomin thought it was Ruthiel, because they recognized her legendary bow (which her predecesor passed on to her). They eventually understand their error, apologize (begrudgingly), and agree to set her free.
_Ruthiel remains deeply displeased, but she agrees to let the matter go if the dwarves leave the Woodland Realm.
_They accept (as per Barin's suggestion), and Ruthiel travels with Barin and the rest of the fellowship back to the elvenking's halls following the completion of the hunt.

 

At the Elvenking's Halls

_When Barin rejoins his companions, he learns that they failed in their hunt, as the deer escaped.
_Nevertheless, the fellowship, and Barin in particular, see their standing with the fair folk improved. With time, Ruthiel expresses her gratitude towards Barin for helping her out of a difficult situation, and she even admits that 'not all of Durin's folk are without skill or merit.' Barin can tell that this is no idle compliment, but represents a greater change of mind, that Ruthiel herself did not deem possible.
_Back at the elvenking's halls, king Thranduil honors the company as important guests, despite the fact that they return empty-handed. They jointly participate in a great feast, as a famous elven hunter is in fact the only one to return successful from the hunt - but venison from the enchanted beast is shared amongst all.
_After the feast, Thranduil summons the company again, to tell them that he has sent sentinels to where the ruins of the Eastfort stand. The sentinels succesfully drive out the Marsh-Dwellers and claim their hoard.
_After receiving his share, Thranduil tasks the fellowship with returning the still considerable hoard to King Bard in Dale.

 

Lake-Town and Dale

_The companions return, successful, to Bard, who welcomes them with great honors, as befits returning heroes.
_All companions, as well as Bofri, share a place of honor by King Bard during the celebrations of Dragontide (in Lake-Town) and the anniversary of the Battle of the Five Armies (in Dale) in late automn.
_They are also allowed to attend the wedding of King Bard with Una the fair shortly after those events, if they so wish, as heroes of renown.
_Securing audiences with Bofri / Gloin / Dain / Bard / etc after all of this is not a problem, and can be done, though it may be impossible to talk with everyone, due to time constraints.

 

Rewards and Mechanics

Barin receives the following:
_10 XP and 6 APs for the completion of the adventure.
_+10 Treasure Points from King Bard and (soon-to-be) Queen Una.
_Barin can select any elven artefact from the reclaimed hoard of the Marsh-Dwellers: a gift from King Thranduil for his part in this. Select any one Common Skill; the artefact will provide a blessing on this skill (as explained in the Rivendell source book, the main benefit of such an artefact is that you can add your Wisdom to rolls with that skill). We can work together to come up with the description / type of item.
_Dridek Shatterhorn bids Barin farewell after their adventure in the Woodland Realm, but because Barin has earned his respect, he entrusts his young son, Núr son of Dridek, to journey with him and accompany him, if Barin will accept his service, to learn from the older, more experienced Barin.

In terms of mechanics, Núr can support Barin initially with his Travel skill, allowing Barin to re-roll any 1s that come up on the d6s. Barin must take the new results (even if they are still 1s). As Barin grows in experience, he can train Núr to help him in other tasks, by spending 1 XP and a year's end Fellowship undertaking. Barin can then select another of his common skills, that is at 3 or higher, to be supported in a similar manner.

 

What next?

Please let me know, in order of decreasing priority, to whom Barin would like to speak, and what he wants to do / tell them. Some ideas are: Bard, Una, Dain, Bofri, Gloin, Frar.

[Vladim]

After the wedding festivities had died down, Barin reluctantly spread the news to his friends and companions that he would soon be leaving for the Lonely Mountain before the onset of winter in order to secure an audience with King Dain.

Before his departure though, he calls audience with Bofri, Gloin and King Bard - firstly to let them know that he would be unable to help further with the restoration of the Eastfort, but also to warn them both of the news from the Grey Mountains and their occupation by the Orcs.

After imparting his news, and saying his farewells, he begins the short journey northwards to the Mountain to try and secure audience with King Dain and Frar to attempt to persuade Dain to lend his forces to driving the Orcs back out of the Grey mountains lest they become emboldened and attempt to push further south and east come the Spring.

[Vladim]

ooc: I've updated Barin's character sheet with the outcome from his AP/XP. In summary:

Battle: Increased to 1
Lore: Increased by +1
Wisdom: Increased by +1
New Virtue: Old Hatred

Took weapon specialisation in my Fell Axe (from my Axes proficiency) and bought a new level there, so Barin is now 4d skill with his particular Axe.

For his Elven artifact, I'm figuring he'll take something which imparts a bonus to his persuade rolls, since he appears to be becoming quite the diplomat. I'm waiting for a couple more sourcebooks to arrive later today, so hopefully will be able to hang some specifics on this later.

[Vladim]

(End of adventure.)